~ Musings of a pastor and gardener…

Category Archives: News

Imagine for a minute that you were on the receiving end of verbal tirade from someone you work with. Then imagine you were physically assaulted by that person and had to go to the A&E department of the local hospital. With that in mind now defend Jeremy Clarkson and tell me why he should have kept his job?

I enjoy Top Gear and even Clarkson however, bullies need accountability…no matter who they are. The BBC has made the right decision in my mind considering the facts surrounding the events that transpired. How anyone could defend Clarkson or call for his re-instatement is beyond me. No one in his position would’ve kept their job and nor should he.*

*(This is not a personal post about Clarkson. i don’t know the man. It is more a reflection on how we elevate celebrities above others and excuse behaviours we would not in so called ordinary people).

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I like camping. I love the feeling of space and the experience of the great outdoors but THIS is a bit to extreme for my liking! According to ABC News, Tommy Caldwell and Kevin Jorgeson have completed a historic Dawn Wall ascent in Yosemite National Park to be the first people to climb this part of El Capitan without bolts or climbing tools! As with all these sorts of things, now someone has done it no doubt others will follow…not this camper though! :)

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In memory of Australian Cricketer Phillip Hughes, who passed away yesterday after being struck by a cricket ball, the ABC has suggested people lean a Cricket bat against their letter box or front door. My Gray Nicolls is packed away but I have this small MRF bat and today I have it on my desk leaning against the wall as a mark of respect for a fine young man and great Australian cricketer.

Cricket is our national game and today as a nation we mourn this tragic loss. Cricket is not a dangerous sport and yet yesterday the game claimed one of its own. Many Australian children dream of playing Cricket for Australia and Phillip Hughes achieved that dream. At 26 his best was before him. As Richard Keith pointed out Hughes was only test cricketer to score a duck, a half-century, a century, and 150 in his first four innings and as one person commented in response, “And one of very few who have remained ‘not out’ for eternity…”

Vale Phillip Hughes.

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Today is my birthday. It is also the day that one of my favourite actors and bar-none my favourite comedian, Robin Williams passed away. I was shocked by my response to his passing. Celebrities die all the time. Most of the deaths make headlines and I read the story and move on. Not this time. I should not have been surprised at my response:

Because of Robin Williams’ performance in Good Morning Vietnam I wanted to be a radio announcer and for 3 years I was a news reader and breakfast radio host.

Because of Robin Williams’ performance in Goodwill Hunting I realised I could be more than what life had dealt me. That movie moved me.

Because of Robin Williams I laughed, a lot.

Because of Robin Williams I make others laugh. One of my strengths is my sense of humour and my ability to make others laugh. Most of this I learnt from Robin Williams. As a young boy I memorised his stand-up and movie lines and repeated them at school and to whoever came to our home.

Because of Robin Williams it is a sad day.

It appears he took his own life. There is much that needs to be said about mental health and support for people struggling with the crippling effects of depression. More, I am sure, will be said in days to come. But today we remember our captain, our captain. Today is a day for mourning.

Thank Robin Williams. Thank you for being who you were and making us think and laugh. During the years I struggled to find my identity and gifts you were there as someone to look to.

Vale.

Below is my favourite RW clip – Taken from Good Morning Vietnam. I could of posted the video of his session with Matt Damon in Goodwill Hunting but GMV is my favoruite. What is your favourite RW movie?

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This morning I read some of Mark Driscoll’s ‘Pussified Nation‘ rant and I can honestly say it is one of the most disgusting things I have ever heard from the mouth (or keyboard) of a minister. I agree with Jonathon Merritt we should accept his apology and extend forgiveness. Like all of us Mark is on a journey of what it means to be a disciple of Jesus and a forgiven human.

The reality is none of us have the power to call for his resignation (Although I think he should) unless we are a part of his board or a member of his church. However, I believe it is imperative he is exposed as an unhealthy voice in the Christian church and the publishing world at large. Ironiclly he is doing a good job of revealing this himself. My guess is publishers will quietly step away from him over time. What concerns me is I see young male pastors gorging themselves on his teaching and his books as if he were some kind of Reformed Pope. In reality, unless I have a relationship with them that gives me the rite to say something there is little I can do.

What can we do? Well I am no expert but two things come to mind:

Firstly, starve the story of attention. I suspect that the vitriol delivered to Mark Driscoll actually spurs him on somewhat. By all means address the issues and the unhealthy teaching but play the ball and not the man. I would go so far as to not ever mention the person. People like Mark Driscoll crave attention. Starve the attention and you starve the story of the air t needs to continue. .

Secondly, as one of my lecturers always said to me, “Be for something, don’t be against stuff all the time.” It is easy to stand against something but how often do we actually stand for something? The best way to counter Driscoll’s poor theology is to not talk about why Mark is wrong rather to offer an alternative. To speak about what we believe is right and biblical. Speak life, not death.

I’ll be honest this is a quick post in response to what I read and it goes against the advice I’ve just offered. It is important to note that Mark Driscoll is God’s responsibility, not ours. We can’t fix him. What we can do is speak about the wonderful and glorious grace that is found in Jesus Christ. We can talk about how each one of us is created in the image of God. We can talk about a theology of humanity and creation and how being a man, being a real man, takes on all different shapes and sizes. The builder, the hunter, the banker, the artist, the emotional writer, and the stoic types of men are all acceptable reflections of what it means to be a man created in the image of God. I encourage each one of us to always offer forgiveness and to stand for what we believe not against what we don’t! :)

Dan gets it right (as usual). The pastor’s job is not to join in the yelling and screaming but to shepherd and discern. Dan does this eloquently and with much wisdom.

Every day I have someone screaming at me via Facebook or twitter. Pastors yelling in anger. Sometimes it’s against World Vision and other times its directed at political leaders and the decisions they make. I find it troubling. Where is the grace, where is the love we accuse those we oppose of not having? I have long said that too many of us want to be Jesus. We want to change the world, we want to turn the tables in the temple when in fact the pastor is called to be more like John the Baptist than Jesus. It is our job to point people to Jesus (As Gruenwald’s picture reminds us).

Dan quotes Chesterton’s response to the question, what is wrong with the world? “Dear sirs, I am.”

Until we realise we are as much a part of the problem as those we yell and scream at, very little will change.

Lord I repent.

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While North America freezes and experiences a polar vortex my home city of Adelaide is tipped to record it’s highest ever maximum temperature, 46.1. (115f) According to the local newspaper that makes Adelaide the hottest city in the world today! It is nearly 10am and we’re already above 40c. This is not a good day for gardeners. It is just plain hard for stuff to survive such temps.My tomatoes and other precious produce is covered and we’ve picked a lot of fruit from the trees.

Here in my study at church, so long as the power doesn’t go out, it should be a cool 23. I may even try creating a polar vortex of my own! As for coffee, it could be 50 and I’d still drink coffee although yesterday I poured an espresso shot over ice and ice water. It was delicious and refreshing!

On a serious note, days like today bring an increased rick of bush fire. We’ve already seen people lose their homes this week. Let us pray no such thing occurs today.

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It feels like every blogger has an opinion on the Mark Driscoll controversy. It makes sense, bloggers are meant to have opinions. The whole thing has exposed the underbelly of Christian celebrity and the difference between someone who is published and a writer (Driscoll is the former). Personally, I think people shouldn’t not read Mark Driscoll’s books because of claims he has plagiarized someone else’s work, they shouldn’t read them because it is bad theology and his teaching is dangerous and un-Christlike. Especially when compared to the ministry of THIS man. I encourage you to read the CT article. I think it makes some very good points about what we as Protestants and Evangelicals can learn form the Pope. It is easy to have right belief but without the action of loving our neighbour as ourselves we fall short. From this we can all learn.

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I don’t expect American’s (Dan Thompson especially) to get it but today Australia reclaimed the Ashes. This Australian side showed glimmers of the Dominators side that conquered the Brits series after series. 3-0 and the Urn Returns. I’ll take that! :)

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It is a slow news day when I make the front page! Well, our community garden anyway! When the story is online I will post a link. If you are interested in the Happy Patch Community Garden you can check out the Facebook page HERE (You don’t have to be on Facebook to view the page). :)

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About Mark Stevens

Mark is pastor of the Happy Valley Church of Christ in Adelaide, South Australia. He holds a Master of Ministry from Tabor College Adelaide. The Parson's Patch is a collection of musings on the pastoral vocation, coffee (humour), gardening and other topics of interest! Mark reviews books for Zondervan, IVP, Kregel Academic and Logos Bible Software.

Endorsement

"I am happy to commend Mark Stevens' fine blog which provides resources and discussion on a panoply of things crucial to Christian ministry in the 21rst century. But quite apart from the resources, Mark evinces a mind for what really matters when it comes to the serious study of God's Word--- highly recommended. "